Tommy Thompson's story has all the elements of a Hollywood thriller—an elusive 19th-century shipwreck, cutting-edge underwater technology, a modern-day treasure hunt, and a fortune that led to betrayal, lawsuits, and a years-long manhunt. Once celebrated as the genius who discovered the legendary "Ship of Gold" and its lost riches, Thompson is now known as the treasure hunter who ended up in prison for refusing to give up 500 missing gold coins. His saga spans from the depths of the Atlantic Ocean to courtrooms and jail cells, blending adventure with a decades-long legal battle.
The "Ship of Gold" and Its Lost Treasure
In September 1857, the sidewheel steamer SS Central America—later nicknamed the "Ship of Gold"—sank in a hurricane off the coast of the Carolinas. The ship was carrying a fortune in gold, mostly from California's Gold Rush. When it went down, 425 passengers and crew perished, and thousands of pounds of gold were lost to the ocean floor. The ship's cargo, estimated at $8 million in 1857 (the equivalent of hundreds of millions today), was so vast that its loss contributed to a financial panic, cementing the wreck's place in history.
For over a century, the SS Central America's treasure lay beyond reach, a tantalizing mystery for treasure hunters and investors alike.
The High-Tech Treasure Hunt
In the 1980s, a young oceanic engineer from Ohio set out to find the lost gold. Tommy Thompson, a scientist with a passion for deep-sea exploration, built a custom underwater robot to locate the wreck. His ambitious plan—combining advanced sonar, satellite data, and even probability-based search theories—was groundbreaking at the time.
To fund the expedition, Thompson persuaded 161 investors to contribute nearly $12.7 million. Among them were major institutions and wealthy backers who saw the potential for a massive return on their investment. With funding secured, he formed a salvage company and launched a cutting-edge operation, using the research vessel Arctic Discoverer and his remotely operated submersible, Nemo.
In September 1988, after exhaustive searches, Thompson's team made history. The cameras on his submersible spotted gold gleaming on the seafloor. The SS Central America had been found—untouched for 131 years. The team brought up gold coins, bars, and ingots, marking the largest treasure recovery in U.S. history. One of the most spectacular finds was an 80-pound gold ingot, which later sold for a record-breaking $8 million.
For a brief moment, Thompson was a hero. His groundbreaking discovery was hailed as an extraordinary feat of deep-sea exploration, and books and documentaries celebrated the achievement. But his troubles were just beginning.
The Lawsuits and Vanishing Treasure
Despite the triumph of discovering the ship, Thompson's legal battles soon overshadowed his success. After years of litigation, a judge awarded Thompson's group the rights to 92% of the treasure, with insurance companies from the 1800s laying claim to the remaining share. This victory, however, was quickly followed by another storm—one that Thompson had not foreseen.
Investors who had funded the expedition began asking, "Where's our cut?" Thompson had reportedly sold $50 million worth of gold, but none of his backers received the promised returns. Some even claimed that Thompson had hidden part of the treasure for himself. By 2005, furious investors filed lawsuits, demanding their money. His own crew members also took legal action, claiming they had been shortchanged on their agreed-upon shares.
Thompson refused to cooperate, insisting that the gold had been transferred to a trust in Belize and that he no longer had access to it. Meanwhile, he had moved to Florida, living in a secluded mansion in Vero Beach and keeping a low profile. By 2012, a federal court ordered him to disclose the location of 500 missing gold coins—but instead of complying, Thompson disappeared.
(Photo by Reinhard Dirscherl/ullstein bild via Getty Images)
On the Run: The Treasure Hunter Becomes a Fugitive
For the next two years, Thompson was one of the most wanted fugitives in America. U.S. Marshals described him as "one of the smartest fugitives they had ever pursued." When authorities searched his abandoned home, they found evidence of careful planning: prepaid burner phones, large amounts of cash, and even a how-to book on disappearing titled How to Live Your Life Invisible.
Thompson had covered his tracks well. He and his longtime assistant, Alison Antekeier, moved into a Hilton hotel in Boca Raton, Florida, where they lived under fake identities. They paid cash for everything, avoided banks, and owned no vehicles. For over a year, they managed to remain undetected.
But in January 2015, U.S. Marshals finally tracked them down. Acting on a tip, they raided the Boca Raton hotel and arrested Thompson in his suite. His time on the run was over, and he was soon extradited back to Ohio to face justice.
The Missing Gold Coins and Imprisonment
Back in court, Thompson struck a plea deal for failing to appear in 2012. He was sentenced to two years in prison and fined $250,000. But there was a catch—he also agreed to reveal the location of the missing 500 coins.
When questioned, however, Thompson claimed he couldn't remember where the gold was. He insisted that it was out of his control and that he suffered from chronic memory loss. The judge was unconvinced.
In December 2015, Thompson was found in civil contempt of court and sentenced to indefinite imprisonment until he complied with the order to reveal the coins' whereabouts. For every day he refused, he was fined $1,000, racking up millions in fines over the years.
Even with mounting pressure, Thompson never provided answers. He spent over seven years in jail, refusing to disclose the missing treasure. In early 2025, a judge ended his contempt sentence, admitting that further incarceration was unlikely to force compliance. But Thompson was immediately ordered to begin serving a two-year criminal sentence, meaning his time behind bars isn't over yet.
